Evading or Refusing to Stop for the Police

Evading or Refusing to Stop for the Police

What Does it Mean to Refuse to Stop for Police?

Refusing to stop for police or evading the police is an offence under section 216 of the Highway Traffic Act (HTA). The severity of the penalty will depend on the facts of a case. You may be charged for a failure to stop if the following elements are present in your case:

while you were driving, you willfully attempted to evade the officer;

you knew the officer was trying to get you to stop and pull over;

you continued to drive with the intent to evade the officer;

the officer’s siren’s went off;

you saw or should have seen the lights;

the officer was driving in a distinctively marked car; and

the officer was in uniform.

If you did not notice the lights of a police car in your rear view mirror, it is possible that the officer will give you a warning. In any event, when a police officer requests that a person pull over, he or she is required to stop according to the law. This expectation remains even if the person believes the police officer had no justifiable reason to request the person to stop. So long as the police officer is able to demonstrate that he or she had probable cause of any law to request the stop, it is a legal request and compliance is expected. The best practice is to pull over and allow the officer the opportunity to explain the reason for the stop.

If an officer asks for basic information such as your driver’s licence, proof of insurance and registration, it is recommended that you provide these. After that, you have a right to remain silent and talk to a lawyer before you answer any questions posed by the police officer.

Penalties

Refusing to stop for a police officer without lawful excuse can result in a variety of penalties including but not limited to a driver licence suspension, restitution and other fines, probation, community service and potential jail time. Specifically, anybody who fails to stop can be convicted of the offence and be subject to a fine of not less than $1,000 and not more than $10,000, to imprisonment for a term of not more than 6 months, or to both a fine and imprisonment. If you are convicted of wilfully evading the police, harsher penalties may be imposed. In particular, you could face a fine between $5,000 and $25,000 and a minimum imprisonment for a term of not less than 14 days and not more than six months. If any bodily harm or death is caused during the evasion, your driver’s licence could be suspended for five years, or 10 years to a lifetime along with demerit points to your driving record.

Defence

The offence of failing to stop for police is a strict liability offence. Accordingly, a defence of due diligence is available. If you can demonstrate sincere and mistaken belief that there were no police trying to stop you, and this is found objectively reasonable, you may receive a different or lesser serious penalty. Other defences may be available depending on your case and that is where the role of one of our lawyers at Aitken Robertson comes into play.

What Should I do if I am Stopped by a Police Officer?

If you are stopped by a police officer in a marked car for a traffic violation, keep in mind the following tips to increase your chances of avoiding a ticket:

Slow down and safely pull over as soon as possible to avoid being accused of evading the police officer

Remain calm and collected

Turn off the engine of the car

Keep both hands clearly in sight

Do not exit the vehicle unless instructed by the officer

Be respectful, courteous and non-confrontational

Comply with the officer’s demands

Do not volunteer information

Provide your driver’s licence, insurance, and registration

Ask for the officer’s name and badge number in a non-confrontational manner

How Can a Criminal Defence Lawyer from Aitken Robertson Assist?

Police officers are empowered by the law to execute their duties in the name of protecting members of the public. Our lawyers are knowledgeable with respect to employing an array of strategies to help you negotiate a plea bargain to get rid of the charges or to enter a plea for a lesser crime that carries a minimal penalty. Check out what our clients are saying about us in our reviews and then let us go to work for you!

Yasmine’s patience, compassion and understanding allow her to work collaboratively and effectively with her clients. She appreciates the level of fear and confusion most people feel when confronted with the legal system. With that in mind, Yasmine puts her best foot forward to offer quality legal services.

The Aitken Robertson Advantage

Was almost done my court matters and was charged with a breach of conditional sentence which could mean I could be sent to jail to finish the remainder of my sentence. I had Lavinia who worked very hard and got me an amazing deal which meant only paying a fine and no time. I’m very happy with her services and recommend the team.

Rob Martin

13:06 29 Jun 18

The team at Aitken Robertson are professional and understanding. I hired Richard after my 2 DUI Charge in less than 10 years...so you can imagine I was in some serious trouble. Richards team looked at every aspect and angle of my case and where able to get the charge reduced down to careless driving without even going to trial. We where scheduled for a 2 day trial but like Richard said the Crown Blinked....... Thanks again everyone :)

Rose Myers

12:15 24 Jul 18

The team at Aitkens Robertson in peterborough are truley amazing!!! Phil and Carol are a great team to fight for you.Had some serious charges almost back to back.Both Phil and Carol worked endlessly to get us the best possible outcome with tremendous success.! They both have a great understanding and care of young adults and explained everything more then once.Made time for us any time needed.Highly recommended

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18:43 30 May 18

Look no further! The legal services provided to me by the Aitken Robertson team was an absolute success. Without going into detail regarding my case I am grateful for the support and outcome of my case. it was clear I made the right decision, the knowledge and experience displayed was very impressive to say the least. Thank you Susan, Edmund, Richard and Nasif.

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21:36 25 Jun 18

The staff is very patient and understanding and they all work together in order to get you the best results. I would recommend this service to anyone.

Mark Kroening

18:07 20 Feb 19

Great experience with this firm. Phil is the best and obviously knows what he's doing. Ended up getting my charge dropped. Would highly recommend.

DB

17:49 16 Nov 18

Mr Cardy is an amazing legal representative and person. Yes Amazing. I was facing a challenging trial do too complicated traffic charges. After getting to speak with Mr Cardy he alleviated alot of stress and concern that burdened me for 1 year. He provided valuable knowledge and was quite intelligent and that eased my stress of the approaching Trial Court Date . He provided an abundance of research and paperwork as I was doing the same but he just had that intelligent edge and legal insight that was confidence building. He was very kind and a pleasure too speak with and very personable. On my court Date Mr Cardy spoke with the crown attorney and all Charges were dropped. I did not even enter the courtroom . Mr Cardy is truly amazing legal representative and great person from our interaction. I cant thank him enough and highly recommend acquiring him as Legal Counsel.